Devices, systems and methods for dynamically selecting or generating textual titles for enrichment data of video content items

ABSTRACT

Methods and devices for enhancing user experience while a user is watching a content item using a content playing device, by proposing and/or displaying an enrichment content item related to the content item watched by the user, where the enrichment content item is assigned a dynamic title. The dynamic title may be a different title at different instances the enrichment content item is recommended to a user. The dynamic title may be based on a connection between the content item watched by the user and the enrichment content item. The dynamic title may be automatically generated, in real time, based on such a connection, or may be selected, in real-time, from a group of pre-defined titles reflecting different aspects of the watched content item.

RELATED APPLICATION

The present application gains priority from U.S. Provisional PatentApplication 62/618,150 filed Jan. 17, 2018, and entitled “Selecting aTitle for Enrichment Data According to Context”, which is incorporatedherein by reference as if fully set forth herein.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention, in some embodiments, relates to displaying of one or morevideo content items, and more particularly to methods and systems fordynamically selecting or generating textual titles for enrichment dataof video content items based on a context used for selection of theenrichment items.

When television (TV) technology first became commercially available tothe public, users could only consume video content at their homes underfixed, pre-determined, schedules and in a linear way. In other words, auser could only watch a movie or a news program at the time abroadcaster decided to broadcast it, and no deviation from thepre-defined program schedule was possible. The only flexibility a userhad was the selection of the channel that will be displayed on theuser's TV screen, thus selecting between multiple video content itemsthat are aired at a given time.

At a later stage, Video-On-Demand (VOD) was offered to users. Thisservice enables users to consume content not appearing on the currentprograms schedule, resulting in a significant increase in flexibilitywhen deciding what to watch. Another boost in user flexibility wasachieved when TV operators introduced Catch-Up TV services which notonly allow a user to pick any program recently offered in the EPG(Electronic Program Guide), but also allow him to jump backward andforward in time within a specific program and to pause and resume theplaying of a program.

The next step in the process of increasing user flexibility and freedomof choice when selecting what to watch was reached when some advancedSet-Top Boxes (STBs) started offering means for navigation betweendifferent content items. For example, a user currently watching a crimemystery movie set in Australia may ask the TV system to propose to himoptions for displaying another content item that is related to thecurrently watched movie, or for displaying other information related tothat movie. He may then be presented with a list of options, which may,for example, include:

-   -   a. One or more other crime mystery movies;    -   b. One or more other movies in which the plot is set, or occurs,        in Australia;    -   c. One or more other movies having the same director as the        current movie;    -   d. One or more other movies which include an actor or an actress        that also appears in the current movie;    -   e. A review of the current movie by the New York Times;    -   f. A biography of the main actress of the current movie;    -   g. A still picture of the main actress of the current movie;    -   h. A graphic animation that is based on the plot of the current        movie;

The user may then select a content item from the list and in responsewill be presented with the selected content item. Content (whether mediacontent or non-media content) that is proposed to a user based on amedia content item that the user is currently watching is sometimesreferred to as “enrichment data” or “content recommendations”.

This linking of currently watched media content items to other relatedmedia content items and/or to other related information (non-mediacontent items) brought user flexibility and freedom of choice to newlevels not previously available.

An additional improvement with respect to a viewer's freedom of choiceoccurred when still more advanced STBs started proposing related contentitems that are related to specific portions of a currently playing mediacontent item or are related to specific entities appearing for a shortperiod of time in a currently playing media content item. These contentitems are not necessarily related to the currently played media contentitem as a whole. For example, a short appearance of a certaingeographical location (for example the UN building in New York City) ina movie or in a news program may result in offering to the user contentitems that are related to that location. The user may, for example, bepresented with a list of enrichment data options that includes:

-   -   a. One or more movies whose plot (at least partially) occurs in        the UN building.    -   b. One or more movies whose plot (at least partially) deals with        diplomatic relations between states.    -   c. An article about the history of the UN organization.    -   d. A biography of the current Secretary General of the UN        organization.    -   e. A still picture of the first Secretary General of the UN        organization.

Such linking of entities embedded within media content items to otherrelated content items further enhanced user flexibility and freedom ofchoice.

Provision of recommendations for content items related to what a user iscurrently viewing is not limited to TV systems. With more and morecontent viewing moving from TV screens to computer and/or phone screens,a similar development had occurred in the Internet browsing experience.

In many websites (such as YouTube, CNN, Fox News), while a user iswatching a content item, he is provided with recommendations for relatedcontent items. The recommendations are presented in the form of hotlinks, which, when selected by the user (for example by clicking on thelinks), take the user to the linked content item. A link is typicallyshown together with a textual title (part or all of which may serve asthe actual hot link). For a video content item or a still picturecontent item, the link may also be shown together with a thumbnail imageor with a small video window.

The recommendations presented using hot links may be for other contentitems in the same website, as is the case when other YouTube videocontent items are proposed while the user is watching a currentlywatched YouTube video content item. Alternatively, the recommendationsmay include (or even consist only of) recommendations for other contentitems that are located in other websites. For example, some Internetnews websites provide recommended links that are a mixture of links toother content items in the same website as the currently watched contentitem and links to content items in other news websites (see for examplethe news website www.vnet.co.il).

Regardless of the type of content item being watched or displayed whenthe presentation of the recommendations is triggered (e.g. video contentitem, text content item) and regardless of the type of viewing device(e.g. TV screen, computer, phone), a triggered recommendation may pointto a media content item (such as a video content item or a music contentitem) or to a non-media content item (such as a paragraph of text).

Methods for dynamically determining entities in a playing media contentitem and/or determining enrichment data to be recommended or displayedto a user are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,800,951 and in U.S. PatentApplication Publication Nos. 2013/0198642, 2018/0176660, 2012/0183229,2015/0121432, 2016/0127759, 2016/0191957 and 2016/0119691, all of whichare incorporated by reference, for all purposes, as if fully set forthherein.

The Problem to Solve

When proposing related content items to a user, the proposed contentitems must be presented in a way that that will make it clear to theuser what he can expect to see if he selects a given recommendation. Thecommon practice is to display a short text describing a proposed contentitem, which text is typically referred to as a “title”. In many cases,the title (or a portion of it) also serves as a “hot link”, that whenselected by the user, for example by the user pressing a mouse buttonwhile the mouse cursor is above the hot link, indicates the user'sdecision or wish to view that item and causes initiation of displayingthat item. If the proposed content item is an image or a video contentitem, commonly a thumbnail is provided near the title, which thumbnailprovides extra information about the proposed content item.

For example, if the proposed content item is the freeway car chase scenefrom the movie “Lethal Weapon 4”, it may be proposed using a title suchas “Lethal Weapon 4—car chase scene” together with a thumbnail which isbased on a video frame taken from that scene.

As another example, if the proposed content item is a textual newsarticle about scandals in Hollywood, the item may be proposed using atitle such as “The biggest Hollywood scandals of 2017”.

In prior art systems, the title displayed for a related content itembeing recommended to the user is pre-defined prior to the currentviewing session. Additionally, in prior art systems, the title ismanually defined at the time of creation of the recommended contentitem, or at the time of storage thereof in the location from which it isretrieved if selected by the user.

For example, if the proposed content item is a movie that is retrievedfrom a VOD library of a TV operator, the title is assigned when themovie is first created, for example “Gone with the Wind”. If the TVoperator wants to differentiate itself from competitors by adding textin addition to the original movie title, for example “The most romanticmovie ever—Gone with the Wind”, the modified title is defined at thetime the TV operator adds the movie to its library.

As another example, if the proposed content item is a scene from a moviethat a user uploads to YouTube, for example the above-mentioned freewaycar chase scene from the movie “Lethal Weapon 4”, the title is assignedby the uploading user at the time of uploading. In this example, thetitle may be “Lethal Weapon 4—the best ever freeway car chase scene”.

As a further example, if the proposed content item is a news itemretrieved from a news website, for example the above-mentioned news itemrelating to scandals in Hollywood, the title of the proposed contentitem is determined or set by the reporter posting the news item in thenews website, at the time of posting. For example, the title may be“Most recent big Hollywood scandals”.

There exist prior art methods for automatically assigning a title to agiven content item. For example:

-   -   1. Zeng et al. (https://arxiv.org/pdf/1608.07068.pdf) is an        article by researchers from National Tsing Hua University and        Stanford University about automatic generation of titles for        user-generated videos. The approach taken in this article is to        initially identify a short highlight segment of the video, and        then to apply known automatic captioning methods for assigning        text to the highlight segment.    -   2. Khameneh        (http://cads.stanford.edu/projects/presentations/summer-2009/Farnaz%20-%20Automatic%20title%20generation.pdf)        is a presentation by Stanford University about automatic title        generation for textual items. The approach taken in this paper        is to count occurrences of all words in the textual item, to        identify keywords using a large corpus of background text, and        to generate a title based on the identified keywords.

Even when using automatic title generation techniques as described byZeng et al and Khameneh mentioned above, the title of a given contentitem is still assigned ahead of a viewing session in which it isproposed to a user as enrichment content. Consequently, a specific itemwill always have the same title when proposed to a user, even when theitem is proposed at different viewing sessions and/or when proposed todifferent users.

As such, prior art systems do not provide an optimal solution whichwould consider not only the content being proposed to the user, but alsothe context in which the content is being proposed.

Consider for example a TV system, be it a smart TV or any TV fed by asmart Set-Top Box (STB), displaying a given movie, for example “Ransom”,to a user. Such a system may provide the user recommendations forselecting content items that are related to the currently or recentlywatched content. For example, the system may propose one or more othermovies in which the main actor or actress of the current movie is alsoparticipating. In the example of the movie “Ransom”, the system maypropose other movies in which Mel Gibson is the main actor, such as“Braveheart”, “Signs”, “Lethal Weapon 4”, or “What Women Want”.

In this scenario, in which the main reason for the user to choose thenext movie may be his liking of a specific actor or actress, it makessense to represent a proposed movie by a title which emphasizes theparticipation of that specific actor or actress. For example, the title“Mel Gibson in action—Lethal Weapon 4” emphasizes the presence of MelGibson in the proposed movie. This may be more effective in tempting theuser to select the recommendation for the “Lethal Weapon 4” movie overother content items, which are also recommended on the same screen asbeing related to the currently watched content, for example other moviesthat relate to kidnapping of children, as is “Ransom”.

One may argue that the TV operator may achieve the goal of “marketing” arecommendation to the user by displaying, near the pre-defined or fixedtitle, an explicit explanation as to why the specific recommendation isbeing proposed. For example, in the scenario described above, the titlemay be “Lethal Weapon 4”, followed by the description “The movie LethalWeapon 4 is recommended to you because Mel Gibson plays in it”. However,this is cumbersome and consumes excessive screen space, which is alwaysin short supply.

It might seem that the TV operator may improve the likelihood of a userto select a specific link by pre-assigning titles that emphasize anelement that should be emphasized. For example, the operator maypermanently associate with the movie “Lethal Weapon 4” the title “MelGibson in action—Lethal Weapon 4” rather than the simple title of themovie currently presented in prior art systems.

However, this solution is inadequate, because a movie has multipleactors and actresses in its cast, and each of them may be the reason forrecommending the movie to a user. For example, suppose user A iscurrently watching a movie in which Hugh Grant plays, such as “FourWeddings and a Funeral”, and user B is currently watching a movie inwhich Julia Roberts is the main actress, such as “Pretty Woman”. Whenthe TV system recommends content to user A, it includes in therecommendations several movies starring Hugh Grant, for exampleincluding the movie “Notting Hill”. As discussed above, it is desirableto present the recommendation for “Notting Hill” using a title relatingto the connection with Hugh Grant, such as “romantic Hugh Grant inNotting Hill”. When the TV system recommends content to user B, itincludes in the recommendations several movies starring Julia Roberts,for example including the movie “Notting Hill”, in which Julia Robertsco-stars. In this case, it is desirable to present the recommendationfor “Notting Hill” relating to the connection with Julia Roberts, forexample using a title like “pretty Julia Roberts in Notting Hill”. Alas,in prior art systems, a movie (or any other content item) has only asingle title associated with it. As such, the movie “Notting Hill” inwhich both Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts star, is associated with asingle title, which title will be presented to both user A and user B.

One may argue that a solution to the problem of suiting the title to thereason for selecting a specific enrichment content item, would be toassign a title that satisfies both relations at the same time, forexample “romantic Hugh Grant and pretty Julia Roberts in Notting Hill”.However, this is not a satisfactory solution. There are typically manyactors in a movie, each of which may be the reason for recommending themovie to a user. Therefore, a title adapted to include all of the actorsis likely to be very long and cumbersome, and might not sufficientlyappeal to a user that is a fan of only one of the actors so as to tempthim to select this movie. Additionally, there are many aspects to amovie that may be used for generating a recommendation, in addition to,or instead of, the actors playing in the movie, as will be seen in thefollowing examples. For example, recommendations may be based on thedirector, the location of filming or of occurrence, the genre, and manyother characteristics. As such, it is generally impossible to find atitle that covers each and every type of possible relationship orcriterion used to suggest a specific content item to a user.

In another example, related content items are proposed to users if thecontent items are of the same genre as a currently or recently viewedcontent item. For example, suppose that a certain movie is an actioncomedy. Clearly, when recommending this movie to users who are currentlywatching an action movie, it is preferable to present a titleemphasizing the action aspect, while when recommending the movie tousers who are currently watching a comedy it is preferable to present atitle emphasizing the comic aspect. Since the certain action comedy isonly associated with a single title, the problem presented in theprevious example is again encountered—it is possible to satisfy theneeds of some users by selecting a title emphasizing one genre, but inmost cases it is impossible to satisfy the needs of all users who arepresented with a recommendation to choose that certain movie because ofits genre.

In yet another example, related content items are proposed to users ifthe content items were filmed in the same geographical location as acurrently or recently viewed content item. Suppose a certain movie wasfilmed in Alaska, starring a specific actress. Clearly, whenrecommending the movie to users who are currently watching movies filmedin Alaska, it is preferable to present a title emphasizing Alaska.However, the problem presented above regarding selection of a title isonce again encountered, since, for an Alaska-loving user we shouldpreferably select a title that explicitly mentions Alaska, while a titleproposed to a fan of the specific actress should preferably include thename of the specific actress. As such, the need for different titles mayoccur even when each of the titles relates to a different aspect of thecontent item, and not necessarily to the content item including twodifferent actors, being filmed in two different locations, and the like.

While the above examples dealt with TV systems and with movies as therecommended content items, the same issues also exist for Internetbrowsing and for recommended content items of other types. For example,while browsing the Internet, a recommended content item may be a textualnews item about the 10 biggest political scandals of last year, whereeach of the 10 scandals is associated with a different politician. Eachof the 10 politicians mentioned in the news item may be the reason forrecommending this news item to the user, depending on which of thepoliticians is mentioned in a currently displayed news item. Again, nosingle title is suitable for all 10 different reasons for which the itemmay be recommended.

As such, assignment of a single title to a content item, even ifcustomized for use when presenting a recommendation under somecircumstances, cannot satisfy the requirements for such a title underall possible circumstances.

There is thus a need in the art for a method and a system fordynamically selecting or generating a textual title for an enrichmentcontent item of video content items, based on a context used forselection of the enrichment content item. In other words, there is aneed in the art for a method and system for associating different titleswith a single content item, and selecting one of the titles, in realtime, based on the reason for which the content item is being proposedto the user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Some embodiments of the invention relate to displaying of video content,and more particularly to methods and systems for dynamically selectingor generating titles for enrichment data of video content items, basedon a context used for selecting the enrichment data, or on arelationship between the enrichment data and the video content items.

According to an aspect of a first embodiment of the invention, there isprovided a method for enhancing user experience of users consumingcontent items using content playing devices, the method including:

-   -   a) causing displaying a first content item by a first content        playing device;    -   b) during the displaying of the first content item by the first        content playing device:        -   i) automatically identifying a second content item as a            content item having a first connection to the first content            item,        -   ii) automatically determining a first textual title for the            second content item, and        -   iii) causing proposing the second content item to a first of            the users, the proposing including displaying the first            textual title by the first content playing device;    -   c) causing displaying a third content item by a second content        playing device; and    -   d) during the displaying of the third content item by the second        content playing device:        -   i) automatically identifying the second content item as a            content item having a second connection to the third content            item,        -   ii) automatically determining a second textual title for the            second content item, the second textual title being            different from the first textual title, and        -   iii) causing proposing the second content item to a second            of the users, the proposing including displaying the second            textual title by the second content playing device.

In some embodiments, the first content playing device and the secondcontent playing device are the same content playing device. In otherembodiments, the second content playing device is different from thefirst content playing device.

In some embodiments, the first of the users and the second of the usersare the same user. In other embodiments, the first of the users and thesecond of the users are different users.

In some embodiments, the method further includes at least one stepselected from a group consisting of:

-   -   i) during the displaying of the first content item by the first        content playing device and subsequent to the displaying of the        first textual title by the first content playing device, in        response to the first of the users requesting the second content        item, causing displaying the second content item by the first        content playing device, and    -   ii) during the displaying of the third content item by the        second content playing device and subsequent to the displaying        of the second textual title by the second content playing        device, in response to the second of the users requesting the        second content item, causing displaying the second content item        by the second content playing device.

In some embodiments, at least one statement selected from a groupconsisting of the following statements is true:

-   -   i) the automatically determining of the first textual title for        the second content item is based on the first connection, and    -   ii) the automatically determining of the second textual title        for the second content item is based on the second connection.

In some embodiments, at least one statement selected from a groupconsisting of the following statements is true:

-   -   i) the automatically determining of the first textual title        includes automatically selecting the first textual title from a        group of multiple textual titles for the second content item,        and    -   ii) the automatically determining of the second textual title        includes automatically selecting the second textual title from        the group of multiple textual titles for the second content        item.

In some embodiments, at least one statement selected from a groupconsisting of the following statements is true:

-   -   i) the automatically determining of the first textual title        includes automatically generating the first textual title during        the displaying of the first content item by the first content        playing device, and    -   ii) the automatically determining of the second textual title        includes automatically generating the second textual title        during the displaying of the third content item by the second        content playing device.

In some such embodiments, at least one statement selected from a groupconsisting of the following statements is true:

-   -   i) the automatically generating of the first textual title        includes automatically changing a default textual title        according to a rule associated with the first connection, and    -   ii) the automatically generating of the second textual title        includes automatically changing the default textual title        according to a rule associated with the second connection.

In some embodiments, the first, second and third content items are videocontent items, and at least one connection selected from a groupconsisting of the first connection and the second connection is selectedfrom a group consisting of:

-   -   A) sharing a common actor or a common actress,    -   B) sharing a common director,    -   C) sharing a common location of filming,    -   D) sharing a common plot location, and    -   E) sharing a common genre.

In some embodiments, the first and the third content items are first andthird video content items, and at least one connection selected from agroup consisting of the first connection and the second connection isselected from a group consisting of:

-   -   A) a connection between the second content item and the first or        the third video content item as a whole,    -   B) a connection between the second content item and a scene of        the first or the third video content item, and    -   C) a connection between the second content item and a named        entity appearing in the first or the third video content item.

In some embodiments, at least one content playing device selected from agroup consisting of the first content playing device and the secondcontent playing device includes a TV system, and at least one contentitem selected from a group consisting of the first content item, thesecond content item and the third content item is a media content item.

In some embodiments, at least one user selected from a group consistingof the first and the second of the users is consuming at least onecontent item selected from a group consisting of the first content itemand the third content item while browsing the Internet, and at least onecontent item selected from a group consisting of the first content item,the second content item and the third content item is a non-mediacontent item.

According to another aspect of the first embodiment of the invention,there is provided a device for enhancing user experience of usersconsuming content items using content playing devices, the deviceincluding:

-   -   a) one or more processors in communication with the content        playing devices; and    -   b) a non-transitory computer readable storage medium for        instructions execution by the one or more processors, the        non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored:        -   i) instructions to cause displaying a first content item by            a first content playing device;        -   ii) instructions, to be executed during the displaying of            the first content item by the first content playing device,            including:            -   (1) instructions to automatically identify a second                content item as a content item having a first connection                to the first content item,            -   (2) instructions to automatically determine a first                textual title for the second content item, and            -   (3) instructions to cause proposing the second content                item to a first of the users, the proposing including                displaying the first textual title by the first content                playing device;        -   iii) instructions to cause displaying a third content item            by a second content playing device; and        -   iv) instructions, to be executed during the displaying of            the third content item by the second content playing device,            including:            -   (1) instructions to automatically identify the second                content item as a content item having a second                connection to the third content item,            -   (2) instructions to automatically determine a second                textual title for the second content item, the second                textual title being different from the first textual                title, and            -   (3) instructions to cause proposing the second content                item to a second of the users, the proposing including                displaying the second textual title by the second                content playing device.

In some embodiments, the one or more processors are in directcommunication with at least some of the content playing devices. Inother embodiments, the one or more processors are in indirectcommunication with at least some of the content playing devices, andcommunicate with those content playing devices via corresponding otherdevices, for example via corresponding Set-Top Boxes.

According to an aspect of a second embodiment of the invention, there isprovided a method for enhancing user experience while a user isconsuming content items using a content playing device, the methodincluding:

-   -   a) causing displaying a first content item by the content        playing device;    -   b) during the displaying of the first content item by the        content playing device:        -   i) automatically identifying a second content item as a            content item having a connection to the first content item,        -   ii) subsequent to the automatically identifying the second            content item, automatically generating a textual title for            the second content item, the textual title being based on            the connection between the second content item and the first            content item, and        -   iii) causing proposing the second content item to the user,            the proposing including displaying the textual title by the            content playing device.

In some embodiments, the method further includes during the displayingof the first content item by the content playing device and subsequentto the displaying of the textual title by the content playing device, inresponse to the user requesting the second content item, causingdisplaying the second content item by the content playing device.

In some embodiments, the automatically generating of the textual titleincludes automatically changing a default textual title according to arule associated with the connection between the second content item andthe first content item.

In some embodiments, the first and second content items are videocontent items, and the connection between the second content item andthe first content item is selected from a group consisting of:

-   -   A) sharing a common actor or a common actress,    -   B) sharing a common director,    -   C) sharing a common location of filming,    -   D) sharing a common plot location, and    -   E) sharing a common genre.

In some embodiments, the first content item is a video content item, andthe connection between the second content item and the first contentitem is selected from a group consisting of:

-   -   A) a connection between the second content item and the video        content item as a whole,    -   B) a connection between the second content item and a scene of        the video content item, and    -   C) a connection between the second content item and a named        entity appearing in the video content item.

In some embodiments, the content playing device includes a TV system,and at least one content item selected from a group consisting of thefirst content item and the second content item is a media content item.

In some embodiments, the user is consuming the first content item whilebrowsing the Internet, and at least one content item selected from agroup consisting of the first content item and the second content itemis a non-media content item.

According to another aspect of the second embodiment of the invention,there is provided a device for enhancing user experience while a user isconsuming content items using a content playing device, the deviceincluding:

-   -   a) one or more processors in communication with the content        playing device; and    -   b) a non-transitory computer readable storage medium for        instructions execution by the one or more processors, the        non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored:        -   i) instructions to cause displaying a first content item by            the content playing device;        -   ii) instructions, to be executed during the displaying of            the first content item by the content playing device,            including:            -   (1) instructions to automatically identify a second                content item as a content item having a connection to                the first content item,            -   (2) instructions, to be executed subsequent to execution                of the instructions to automatically identify the second                content item, to automatically generate a textual title                for the second content item, the textual title being                based on the connection between the second content item                and the first content item, and            -   (3) instructions to cause proposing the second content                item to the user, the proposing including displaying the                textual title by the content playing device.

In some embodiments, the one or more processors are in directcommunication with the content playing device. In other embodiments, theone or more processors are in indirect communication with the contentplaying device, and communicate with the content playing device via atleast one other device, for example via a Set-Top Box.

According to an aspect of a third embodiment of the invention, there isprovided a method for enhancing user experience while a user isconsuming content items using a content displaying device, the methodincluding:

-   -   a) causing displaying a first content item by the content        playing device;    -   b) during the displaying of the first content item by the        content playing device:        -   i) automatically identifying a second content item as a            content item having a connection to the first content item,        -   ii) subsequent to the automatically identifying the second            content item, automatically selecting a textual title for            the second content item from a group of multiple textual            titles associated with the second content item, wherein the            automatically selecting is based on the connection between            the second content item and the first content item, and        -   iii) causing proposing the second content item to the user,            the proposing including displaying the textual title by the            content playing device.

In some embodiments, each of the textual titles in the group of multipletextual titles is defined prior to the displaying of the first contentitem.

In some embodiments, the method further includes, during the displayingof the first content item by the content playing device and subsequentto the displaying of the textual title by the content playing device, inresponse to the user requesting the second content item, causingdisplaying the second content item by the content playing device.

In some embodiments, the first and second content items are videocontent items, and the connection between the second content item andthe first content item is selected from a group consisting of:

-   -   A) sharing a common actor or a common actress,    -   B) sharing a common director,    -   C) sharing a common location of filming,    -   D) sharing a common plot location, and    -   E) sharing a common genre.

In some embodiments, the first content item is a video content item, andthe connection between the second content item and the first contentitem is selected from a group consisting of:

-   -   A) a connection between the second content item and the video        content item as a whole,    -   B) a connection between the second content item and a scene of        the video content item, and    -   C) a connection between the second content item and a named        entity appearing in the video content item.

In some embodiments, the content playing device includes a TV system,and at least one content item selected from a group consisting of thefirst content item and the second content item is a media content item.

In some embodiments, the user is consuming the first content item whilebrowsing the Internet, and at least one content item selected from agroup consisting of the first content item and the second content itemis a non-media content item.

According to another aspect of the third embodiment of the invention,there is provided a device for enhancing user experience while a user isconsuming content items using a content playing device functionallyassociated with the device, the device including:

-   -   a) one or more processors in communication with the content        playing device; and    -   b) a non-transitory computer readable storage medium for        instructions execution by the one or more processors, the        non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored:        -   i) instructions to cause displaying a first content item by            the content playing device;        -   ii) instructions, to be executed during the displaying of            the first content item by the content playing device,            including:            -   (1) instructions to automatically identify a second                content item as a content item having a connection to                the first content item,            -   (2) instructions, to be executed subsequent to execution                of the instructions to automatically identify the second                content item, to automatically select a textual title                for the second content item from a group of multiple                textual titles associated with the second content item,                wherein the automatically selecting is based on the                connection between the second content item and the first                content item, and            -   (3) instructions to cause proposing the second content                item to the user, the proposing including displaying the                textual title by the content playing device.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art to which the invention pertains. In case of conflict, thespecification, including definitions, will take precedence.

As used herein, the terms “comprising”, “including”, “having” andgrammatical variants thereof are to be taken as specifying the statedfeatures, integers, steps or components but do not preclude the additionof one or more additional features, integers, steps, components orgroups thereof. These terms encompass the terms “consisting of” and“consisting essentially of”.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The invention is herein described, by way of example only, withreference to the accompanying drawings. With specific reference now tothe drawings in detail, it is stressed that the particulars shown are byway of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of thepreferred embodiments of the present invention only, and are presentedin the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful andreadily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspectsof the invention. In this regard, no attempt is made to show structuraldetails of the invention in more detail than is necessary for afundamental understanding of the invention, the description taken withthe drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how the severalforms of the invention may be embodied in practice. Throughout thedrawings, like-referenced characters are used to designate likeelements.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1A is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a device forselecting enrichment data and a title therefor according to a firstembodiment of the teachings herein;

FIG. 1B is a flow chart of a method for selecting enrichment data and atitle therefor according to the first embodiment of the teachingsherein;

FIG. 2A is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a device forselecting enrichment data and a title therefor according to a secondembodiment of the teachings herein;

FIG. 2B is a flow chart of a method for selecting enrichment data and atitle therefor according to the second embodiment of the teachingsherein;

FIG. 3A is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a device forselecting enrichment data and a title therefor according to a thirdembodiment of the teachings herein; and

FIG. 3B is a flow chart of a method for selecting enrichment data and atitle therefor according to the third embodiment of the teachingsherein.

DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

It is a goal of the present invention to support multiple titles for asingle content item. Moreover, a specific one of the multiple titles tobe used in a specific recommendation being presented to the user isselected or generated at run-time, and may depend on the specific reasonfor presenting the recommendation for the content item.

In one embodiment, termed “a title selection embodiment”, an offlineprocess prepares a set of multiple titles for a single content item,where each title is suitable for a certain type of relation between thesingle content item and a content item currently being watched, or whichhas recently been watched. For example, if a certain movie entitled “TheSimon Brothers” is a comic thriller starring Clint Eastwood and JamieLee Curtis, and was filmed partly in Hawaii and partly in San Francisco,then at least the following titles may be prepared in advance for “TheSimon Brothers”:

-   -   a. A title emphasizing the comic aspect, for example “Laugh with        the Simon Brothers”;    -   b. A title emphasizing the thriller aspect, for example “Hold        your breath with the Simon Brothers”;    -   c. A title emphasizing the participation of Clint Eastwood, for        example “Clint Eastwood in action in The Simon Brothers”;    -   d. A title emphasizing the participation of Jamie Lee Curtis,        for example “Impressive Jamie Lee Curtis in The Simon Brothers”;    -   e. A title emphasizing the Hawaii location, for example “See        Hawaii with the Simon Brothers”; and    -   f. A title emphasizing the San Francisco location, for example        “Walk the streets of San Francisco with the Simon Brothers”.

When that certain movie is included in a list of content itemsrecommended to a user who is currently watching another movie, one titlefrom the pre-defined list of titles available for that certain movie isautomatically selected by the system, and is used for presenting therecommendation. The title selection is carried out in real-time, as partof the preparation of the list of recommendations. After deciding thatthe certain movie should be included in the list of recommended contentitems, the system determines the type of relation that caused thisrecommendation to be presented—Was it because it is a comedy? Was itbecause it is a thriller? Was it because of the participation of ClintEastwood? Was it because of the participation of Jamie Lee Curtis? Wasit because of the Hawaii location? Was it because of the San Franciscolocation? Depending on the reason for selecting the movie to besuggested to the user, the relevant title from the list of pre-definedtitles, which is associated with that reason, is selected for display.

Optionally, the system may also have a default title, to be used whenthe type of relation causing the inclusion of this content item in thelist of recommendations was not one for which there is a pre-definedmatching title. The default title may be an additional title, notassigned to any specific relation type, or may be one of the pre-definedtitles, corresponding to some type of relation, that additionally servesas a default title.

Optionally, multiple relation types may correspond to a single commontitle. For example, a title mentioning the name of a given actortogether with the name of the movie's plot location may be used as themost appropriate title for recommendations based on the identity of thegiven actor and for recommendations based on the movie's plot location.

Optionally, it is possible that at different times, at which a certaincontent item is proposed based on a certain reason, it will berepresented by different title. For example, the set of pre-assignedtitles of the certain content item may contain multiple titlescorresponding to the same actor, and when that actor is the reason forproposing the certain content item, one of the multiple titlesappropriate for that certain actor is randomly selected. Alternatively,the selection between the multiple titles appropriate for use when theactor is the reason for proposing the content item is in accordance withsome non-random consideration, such as based on use of turns of thedifferent titles, based on a time of day, based on user demographicdata, or based on user preferences.

The offline selection of the multiple titles and the correspondingreasons of inclusion in the recommendation list may be accomplishedeither manually, or by using any of the methods disclosed in the priorart for automatic generation of titles, such as the methods described byZeng et al. (https://arxiv.org/pdf/1608.07068.pdf) and/or by Khameneh(http://cads.stanford.edu/projects/presentations/summer-2009/Farnaz%20-%20Amomatic%20title%20generation.pdf),both of which are incorporated by reference as if fully set forthherein.

In another embodiment, termed “a title generation embodiment”, there isno offline preparation of titles in advance, with the possible exceptionof a default title, and the most appropriate title for a given reasonfor recommendation of the content item is generated in real-time,following determination of the reason for recommendation. When thereason for recommending a given content item is determined, for examplebased on an actor, a director, a location, etc., the systemautomatically generates a title that emphasizes the determined reason.

In a first implementation of the title generation embodiment, the systemgenerates the appropriate title in real-time by customizing the defaulttitle, which is neutral with respect to the reason for recommendation ofthe content item, to match the determined reason for recommendation.Such customizing may be based on pre-defined rules or templates. Forexample, a rule for customizing a title when the recommendation is basedon a given actor may be—‘for a default title <def-title> and a givenactor <actor-name>, generate a customized title in the form “See<actor-name> in action in <def-title>”’. As such, for a movie with thedefault title “The Simon Brothers” including actor “Clint Eastwood”, thecustomized title will be “See Clint Eastwood in action in The SimonBrothers”. As another example, a rule for customizing a title when therecommendation is based on a comic genre may be—‘for a default title<def-title>, generate a customized title in the form “Laugh with<def-title>”’. As such, for a movie with the default title “The SimonBrothers”, the customized title will become “Laugh with The SimonBrothers”.

In a second implementation of the title generation embodiment, thesystem generates the appropriate title using real-time processing of thecontent and metadata of the recommended content item, withoutnecessarily relying on a pre-defined default title. Any method known inthe prior art for automatically generating titles for content items maybe used, with the additional requirement that the term identifying therecommendation reason, for example an actor name, a director name, agenre, and the like, must be reflected in the generated title.

The list of reasons for including a content item in the list of proposedcontent items, for which rules or templates for customizing titles aregenerated in the first implementation of the title generationembodiment, may be the same as listed for the title selectionembodiment. For each such reason the customization process may result ina different title. Other details and options disclosed for the titleselection embodiment are also applicable for the title generationembodiment, regardless of the chosen implementation.

Additional embodiments are possible, which combine the title selectionembodiment and the title generation embodiment. Some parts of the titlegeneration process are carried out offline, in advance, while the restof the title generation process is carried out in real-time, followingthe determination of the reason for recommendation of the content item.In all such hybrid embodiments, at least some portion of the titlegeneration process is carried out in advance, and at least some portionof the title generation process is carried out in real-time.

In accordance with a further embodiment, termed “the instance dependenttitle embodiment”, the system may propose different titles at differentinstances the recommendation is presented. This may occur, for example,if the reason for inclusion of the content item in the recommendationlist is different at the different instances, or if the system presentsat one instance the default title and at another instance a titleincluding the reason for inclusion of the content item in therecommendation list. In some cases, different titles may be presented todifferent users. In some cases, different titles may be presented to thesame user at different times at which the recommendation is presented tothat user, based on the different reasons for the recommendations thatare related to the different content items the user is viewing at eachof those different times.

Even though the above explanations focus on cases in which the systemautomatically provides recommendations to the user without beingrequested to do so, the proposed solution is equally applicable to casesin which the user explicitly requests the system to providerecommendations for related content. In both cases the systemautomatically identifies or determines the reason for displaying each ofthe recommended content items, and that reason is used for selecting orgenerating the corresponding preferred title.

It will be appreciated that the content items in a given list ofrecommended content items displayed to a user may be included in thatlist for different types of reason. For example, when accessing adatabase of video items such as YouTube, the user may automatically bepresented with a list of recommended video items, during or after thetime of watching a current video item. One item in the list ofrecommended video items may be proposed because it has the same directoras the watched item and is represented by a title emphasizing thedirector, a second item in the list may be proposed because it has thesame main actor as the watched item and is represented by a titleemphasizing that actor, a third item in the list may be proposed becauseit is of the same genre as the watched item and is represented by atitle emphasizing that genre, and so on.

The explanations provided above focus on cases in which the relation ofa recommendation to the currently watched content item, or the reasonfor selecting a specific content item to be recommended, is based on thecurrently watched content item as a whole, for example recommending anitem that is of the same genre as the currently watched movie. However,the proposed solution is equally applicable to cases in which therelation of the recommendation to the currently watched content item orthe reason for selecting the specific content item to be recommended isbased only on a portion of the content item being watched, or even on asingle scene of the currently watched content item. For example, a carchasing content item may be recommended when the currently watched scenewithin the currently watched content item is a car chase. Similarly, theproposed solution is equally applicable to cases in which the relationof the recommendation to the currently watched content item is arelation to a named entity appearing in the currently watched contentitem. For example, a textual biography of a celebrity whose name appearsas a named entity in the currently watched scene of the currentlywatched content item may be recommended during or following watching ofthis scene.

As such, an innovation of the proposed solution is the ability to usemultiple titles in multiple instances of recommending the same contentitem. Specifically, the generation or selection of the specific title touse in a specific instance is carried out in real-time during thecurrent viewing session.

The principles, uses and implementations of the teachings herein may bebetter understood with reference to the accompanying description andfigures. Upon perusal of the description and figures present herein, oneskilled in the art is able to implement the invention without undueeffort or experimentation.

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, itis to be understood that the invention is not limited in itsapplications to the details of construction and the arrangement of thecomponents and/or methods set forth in the following description and/orillustrated in the drawings and/or the examples. The invention can beimplemented with other embodiments and can be practiced or carried outin various ways. It is also understood that the phraseology andterminology employed herein is for descriptive purpose and should not beregarded as limiting.

Reference is now made to FIG. 1A, which is a schematic block diagram ofan embodiment of a device for selecting enrichment data and a titletherefor according to a first embodiment of the teachings herein.

As seen in FIG. 1A, a device 100 for selecting enrichment data and atitle therefor is functionally associated with one or more contentplaying devices 102, here illustrated as two content playing devices.The content playing device(s) 102 may be any suitable content playingdevice(s), such as a television screen, a computer screen, a projectorprojecting video content onto a wall or a pull-down projector screen,and the like. Different playing devices 102 may be associated withdifferent users, for example with different subscribers of a TV service.

In some embodiments, the device 100 may be, or may include, a Set-TopBox. In some embodiments, the device 100 may be, or may include, a smartTV, in which case the content playing device, or one of the contentplaying devices, may be the screen of the smart TV. In some embodiments,one or more content playing devices 102 may be, or may include, acorresponding Set-Top Box. In some embodiments, one or more contentplaying devices 102 may be, or may include, a corresponding smart TV.

In some embodiments, device 100 may be functionally associated with oneor more databases 104 including content suitable for providing asenrichment data, such as a database of sports statistics suitable forproviding as enrichment content, a database including biographicalinformation and images of actors and actresses, a video clip database,and the like. In some embodiments, device 100 may be connected to, orform part of, a network which can be searched for enrichment data, suchas the Internet, as indicated by arrow 106.

Device 100 includes a processor 108 and a storage medium 110, which istypically a non-transitory computer readable storage medium.

Processor 108 is in communication with the content playing device(s)102.

In some embodiments, the processor may be in direct communication withthe content playing device(s) 102. For example, when device 100 is asmart TV and the content playing device 102 is a screen of the smart TV,the processor 108 is in direct communication with the content playingdevice. As another example, the device 100 may be a Set-Top Box, whichis in direct communication with a content playing device 102 to which itprovides content.

In some embodiments, the processor may be in indirect communication withthe content playing device(s) 102, or may communicate with the contentplaying device(s) via one or more intermediate devices. For example,when device 100 is a server, the processor may communicate with contentplaying devices 102 via Set-Top Boxes corresponding to each of thecontent playing devices 102, which Set-Top Boxes function asintermediate devices.

The storage medium 110 includes instructions to be executed by theprocessor 108, in order to carry out various steps of the methoddescribed herein below with respect to FIG. 1B. Specifically, thestorage medium includes the following instructions:

instructions 112, that when executed by processor 108, cause displayingof a first content item by a first content playing device 102;

instructions 114, that when executed by processor 108, automaticallyidentify a second content item as having a first connection to the firstcontent item;

instructions 116, that when executed by processor 108, automaticallydetermine a first textual title for the second content item;

instructions 118, that when executed by processor 108, cause proposingthe second content item to a first user consuming content items usingthe first content playing device, which proposing includes displayingthe first textual title by the first content playing device;

instructions 122, that when executed by processor 108, cause displayingof a third content item by a second content playing device 102;

instructions 124, that when executed by processor 108, automaticallyidentify the second content item as having a second connection to thethird content item;

instructions 126, that when executed by processor 108, automaticallydetermine a second textual title for the second content item, the secondtextual title being different from the first textual title determined byinstructions 116; and

instructions 128, that when executed by processor 108, cause proposingthe second content item to a second user consuming content items usingthe second content playing device, which proposing includes displayingthe second textual title by the second content playing device.

In some embodiments, the processor 108 executes the instructions 114,the instructions 116, and the instructions 118 simultaneously with thedisplaying of the first content item by the first content playing devicecaused by the execution of the instructions 112. Stated differently, insome embodiments, the second content item is identified as beingconnected to the first content item, a first title for the secondcontent item is determined, and the second content item is proposed tothe first user, are all done during the displaying of the first contentitem.

Similarly, in some embodiments, the processor 108 executes theinstructions 124, the instructions 126, and the instructions 128simultaneously with the displaying of the third content item by thesecond content playing device caused by the execution of theinstructions 122. Stated differently, in some embodiments, the secondcontent item is identified as being connected to the third content item,a second title for the second content item is determined, and the secondcontent item is proposed to the second user, are all done during thedisplaying of the third content item.

In some embodiments, the first and second content playing devices aredifferent devices. In other embodiments, the first and second contentplaying devices are a single content playing device, such thatinstructions 112, 114, 116, and 118 are carried out by processor 108 ata first time, and instructions 122, 124, 126, and 128 are carried out byprocessor 108 at a second time, using the same content playing device.

In some embodiments, the first and second user are two different users.In other embodiments, the first and second users are the same user.

The second content item determined when instructions 114 and/or 124 areexecuted by processor 108, may be any suitable type of content item, andmay include video data, an audio clip, textual data, a still picture,and/or a graphic animation.

In some embodiments, storage medium 110 includes additional instructions(not explicitly shown) to be executed by the processor 108, to causedisplaying of the second content item by the first content playingdevice in response to the first user requesting the second content item,for example by providing, subsequent to the displaying of the firsttitle caused by executing instructions 118, a suitable command toprocessor 108 via a remote controller. The processor 108 executes theadditional instructions to cause displaying of the second content itemby the first content playing device during, or subsequent to, thedisplaying of the first content item and subsequent to execution ofinstructions 118. Stated differently, the processor causes the firstcontent playing device to play the second content item following receiptof a suitable user command, during, or subsequent to, the displaying ofthe first content item and after displaying of the first textual titleof the second content item.

In some embodiments, storage medium 110 includes additional instructions(not explicitly shown) to be executed by the processor 108, to causedisplaying of the second content item by the second content playingdevice in response to the second user requesting the second contentitem, for example by providing, subsequent to the displaying of thesecond title caused by executing instructions 128, a suitable command toprocessor 108 via a remote controller. The processor 108 executes theadditional instructions to cause displaying of the second content itemby the second content playing device during, or subsequent to, thedisplaying of the first content item and subsequent to execution ofinstructions 128. Stated differently, the processor causes the secondcontent playing device to play the second content item following receiptof a suitable user command, during, or subsequent to, the displaying ofthe third content item and after displaying of the second textual titleof the second content item.

In some embodiments, the instructions 116 include instructions toautomatically determine the first textual title for the second contentitem based on the first connection between the first content item andthe second content item.

In some embodiments, the instructions 126 include instructions toautomatically determine the second textual title for the second contentitem based on the second connection between the third content item andthe second content item.

In some embodiments, the instructions 116 include instructions toautomatically select the first textual title for the second content itemfrom a group of multiple pre-defined textual titles for the secondcontent item. In some embodiments, the instructions 126 includeinstructions to automatically select the second textual title for thesecond content item from the group of multiple pre-defined textualtitles.

In some embodiments, the instructions 116 include instructions toautomatically generate the first textual title for the second contentitem in real-time, during displaying of the first content item. In somesuch embodiments, the instructions 116 include instructions toautomatically change a default textual title associated with the secondcontent item according to a rule associated with the first connectionbetween the first content item and the second content item.

In some embodiments, the instructions 126 include instructions toautomatically generate the second textual title for the second contentitem in real-time, during displaying of the third content item. In somesuch embodiments, the instructions 126 include instructions toautomatically change the default textual title associated with thesecond content item according to a rule associated with the secondconnection between the third content item and the second content item.

In some embodiment, the content playing device(s) 102 may be part of aTV system, such that the first content item, the second content item,and/or the third content item are media content items.

A method for selecting enrichment data and a title therefor according tothe first embodiment of the teachings herein, using the device of FIG.1A, is now described with respect to FIG. 1B.

As seen, at step 152, processor 108 of device 100 executes instructions112, and causes displaying of a first content item by a first contentplaying device 102. In some embodiment, the first content item is amedia content item. In some embodiments, the first content item is anon-media content item, for example displayed while the user is browsingthe Internet. For example, at step 152, processor 108 may cause atelevision in Ruth's den (first content playing device 102) to displaythe movie “Mary Poppins”.

At step 154, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the first content playing device, processor 108 executesinstructions 114 and automatically identifies a second content item as acontent item having a first connection to the first content item. Theidentification of the second content item may be carried out using anymethod known in the art, such as the methods described in U.S. Pat. No.9,800,951 and in U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 2013/0198642,2018/0176660, 2012/0183229, 2015/0121432, 2016/0127759, 2016/0191957 and2016/0119691, all of which are incorporated by reference, for allpurposes, as if fully set forth herein.

The second content item identified at step 154 may be any suitablecontent item, and may include video data, an audio clip, textual data, astill picture, and/or a graphic animation.

In some embodiments, the first and second content items are videocontent items, and the first connection between the first and secondcontent items is selected from the group consisting of:

-   -   A) sharing a common actor or a common actress,    -   B) sharing a common director,    -   C) sharing a common location of filming,    -   D) sharing a common plot location, and    -   E) sharing a common genre.

In some embodiments, the first content item is a video content item, andthe connection between the first and second content items is selectedfrom a group consisting of:

-   -   A) a connection between the second content item and the first        video content item as a whole,    -   B) a connection between the second content item and a scene of        the first video content item, and    -   C) a connection between the second content item and a named        entity appearing in the first video content item.

In the present example, the processor may identify the movie “NottingHill” as a second content item, because both “Mary Poppins” and “NottingHill” are set in London. As such, in the present example, the connectionbetween the first content item and the second content item is that bothcontent items are set in the same location.

At step 156, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the first content playing device, processor 108 executesinstructions 116 and automatically determines a first textual title forthe second content item.

In some embodiments, the automatic determination of the first textualtitle at step 156 is based on the first connection between the firstcontent item and the second content item. In the present example, inwhich the first connection is the shared setting location of London, thefirst textual title may be “Tour London in ‘Notting Hill’”.

In some embodiments, the automatic determination of the first textualtitle at step 156 includes automatically selecting the first textualtitle from a group of multiple textual titles for the second contentitem. In some embodiments, each textual title in the group relates to anaspect of the second content item which may form a connection with othercontent items. In the present example, the group may include the textualtitles:

“Tour London in ‘Notting Hill’” (“Notting Hill” is set in London);

“Beautiful Julia Roberts stars in ‘Notting Hill’” (Julia Roberts starsin “Notting Hill”);

“Richard Curtis's creativity in ‘Notting Hill’” (the screenplay of“Notting Hill” is written by Richard Curtis);

“Comic relief with ‘Notting Hill’” (“Notting Hill” is a romanticcomedy);

“Fall in love with ‘Notting Hill’” (“Notting Hill” is a romanticcomedy); and

“Handsome Hugh Grant in ‘Notting Hill’” (Hugh Grant stars in “NottingHill”).

In some embodiments, the automatic determination of the first textualtitle at step 156 includes automatically, and in real-time—i.e. duringdisplaying of the first content item, generating the first textualtitle. In some such embodiments, the first textual title may begenerated based on a rule associated with the first connection betweenthe first and second content items. In the present example, in which thesecond content item “Notting Hill” is selected based on the sharedsetting location with the first content item “Mary Poppins”, the rulemay be “for a content item named <item_name> set in a location<location_name>, generate the title ‘Tour <location_name> in<item_name>’, and the resulting title would be “Tour London in ‘NottingHill’”.

At step 158, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the first content playing device, processor 108 executesinstructions 118 and causes the first content playing device to displaythe first textual title for the second content item, thereby to proposethe second content item to the first user.

In the present example, processor 108 would cause the television inRuth's den (first content playing device 102) to display the generatedrecommendation “Tour London in “Notting Hill””.

In some embodiments, at step 160, processor 108 receives a user requestfrom the first user for viewing the second content item. In the presentexample, Ruth may press a button on a remote controller associated withthe TV in her den, selecting the recommendation to watch “Notting Hill”.

Subsequently, at step 162, processor 108 causes displaying of the secondcontent item by the first content playing device. In the presentexample, the TV in Ruth's den would proceed to play “Notting Hill”.

As seen, at step 172, processor 108 of device 100 executes instructions122, and causes displaying of a third content item by a second contentplaying device 102. In some embodiment, the first content item is amedia content item. In some embodiments, the first content item is anon-media content item, for example displayed while the user is browsingthe Internet.

In some embodiments, the first content playing device and the secondcontent playing device are the same content playing device. Returning tothe present example, the processor may cause the television in Ruth'sden to display the movie “Pretty Woman”.

In other embodiments, the first content playing device is different fromthe second content playing device. In the present example, the processormay cause the television in Ruth's bedroom (second content playingdevice) to display the movie “Pretty Woman”.

At step 174, which takes place during displaying of the third contentitem by the second content playing device, processor 108 executesinstructions 124 and automatically identifies the second content itemidentified at step 154 as a content item having a second connection tothe third content item. In other words, the second content item isconnected to the third content item as well as to the first contentitem. The identification of the second content item may be carried outusing any method known in the art, such as the methods described in U.S.Pat. No. 9,800,951 and in U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos.2013/0198642, 2018/0176660, 2012/0183229, 2015/0121432, 2016/0127759,2016/0191957 and 2016/0119691, all of which are incorporated byreference, for all purposes, as if fully set forth herein.

In some embodiments, the third and second content items are videocontent items, and the second connection between the third and secondcontent items is selected from the group consisting of:

-   -   A) sharing a common actor or a common actress,    -   B) sharing a common director,    -   C) sharing a common location of filming,    -   D) sharing a common plot location, and    -   E) sharing a common genre.

In some embodiments, the third content item is a video content item, andthe connection between the third and second content items is selectedfrom a group consisting of:

-   -   A) a connection between the second content item and the third        video content item as a whole,    -   B) a connection between the second content item and a scene of        the third video content item, and    -   C) a connection between the second content item and a named        entity appearing in the third video content item.

In the present example, the processor may identify the movie “NottingHill” as a second content item, because both “Pretty Woman” and “NottingHill” star Julia Roberts. As such, in the present example, theconnection between the third content item and the second content item isthat both content items share a common lead actress.

At step 176, which takes place during displaying of the third contentitem by the second content playing device, processor 108 executesinstructions 126 and automatically determines a second textual title forthe second content item, which is different from the first textual titlefor the second content item determined at step 166.

In some embodiments, the automatic determination of the second textualtitle at step 176 is based on the second connection between the thirdcontent item and the second content item. In the present example, inwhich the second connection is the shared lead actress Julia Roberts,the second textual title may be “Beautiful Julia Roberts stars in‘Notting Hill’”.

In some embodiments, the automatic determination of the second textualtitle at step 176 includes automatically selecting the first textualtitle from the group of multiple textual titles for the second contentitem, described hereinabove with respect to step 156.

In some embodiments, the automatic determination of the second textualtitle at step 176 includes automatically, and in real-time—i.e. duringdisplaying of the third content item, generating the second textualtitle. In some such embodiments, the second textual title may begenerated based on a rule associated with the second connection betweenthe third and second content items. In the present example, in which thesecond content item “Notting Hill” is selected based on the sharedactress with the third content item “Pretty Woman”, the rule may be “fora content item named <item_name> starring actress <actress_name>,generate the title ‘Beautiful <actress_name> stars in <item_name>’, andthe resulting title would be “Beautiful Julia Roberts stars in ‘NottingHill’”.

At step 178, which takes place during displaying of the third contentitem by the second content playing device, processor 108 executesinstructions 128 and causes the second content playing device to displaythe second textual title for the second content item, thereby to proposethe second content item to a user, which may be the same user or adifferent user.

In the present example, processor 108 would cause the television inRuth's den (if the first and second content playing devices are thesame), or the television in Ruth's bedroom (if the first and secondcontent playing devices are different), to display the generatedrecommendation “Beautiful Julia Roberts stars in “Notting Hill””.

In some embodiments, at step 180, processor 108 receives a user requestfrom the second user for viewing the second content item on the secondcontent playing device. In the present example, Ruth or her husbandDavid may press a button on a remote controller associated with the TVin the bedroom, selecting the recommendation to watch “Notting Hill”.

Subsequently, at step 182, processor 108 causes displaying of the secondcontent item by the second content playing device. In the presentexample, the TV in Ruth's bedroom would proceed to play “Notting Hill”.

Reference is now made to FIG. 2A, which is a schematic block diagram ofan embodiment of a device 200 for selecting enrichment data and a titletherefor according to a second embodiment of the teachings herein.

As seen in FIG. 2A, the device 200 for selecting enrichment data and atitle therefor is functionally associated a content playing device 202.The content playing device 202 may be any suitable content playingdevice, such as a television screen, a computer screen, a projectorprojecting video content onto a wall or a pull-down projector screen,and the like.

In some embodiments, the device 200 may be, or may include, a Set-TopBox. In some embodiments, the device 200 may be, or may include, a smartTV, in which case the content playing device may be the screen of thesmart TV. In some embodiments, the content playing device 202 may be, ormay include, a Set-Top Box. In some embodiments, the content playingdevice 202 may be, or may include, a smart TV.

In some embodiments, device 200 may be functionally associated with oneor more databases 204 including content suitable for providing asenrichment data, such as a database of sports statistics suitable forproviding as enrichment content, a database including biographicalinformation and images of actors and actresses, a video clip database,and the like. In some embodiments, device 200 may be connected to, orform part of, a network which can be searched for enrichment data, suchas the Internet, as indicated by arrow 206.

Device 200 includes a processor 208 and a storage medium 210, which istypically a non-transitory computer readable storage medium.

Processor 208 is in communication with the content playing device 202.

In some embodiments, the processor may be in direct communication withthe content playing device 202. For example, when device 200 is a smartTV and the content playing device 202 is a screen of the smart TV, theprocessor 208 is in direct communication with the content playingdevice. As another example, the device 200 may be a Set-Top Box, whichis in direct communication with a content playing device 202 to which itprovides content.

In some embodiments, the processor may be in indirect communication withthe content playing device 202, or may communicate with the contentplaying device via one or more intermediate devices. For example, whendevice 200 is a server, the processor may communicate with contentplaying devices 202 via a Set-Top Box corresponding to content playingdevice 202, which Set-Top Box functions as an intermediate device.

The storage medium 210 includes instructions to be executed by theprocessor 208, in order to carry out various steps of the methoddescribed herein below with respect to FIG. 2B. Specifically, thestorage medium includes the following instructions:

instructions 212, that when executed by processor 208, cause displayingof a first content item by the content playing device 202;

instructions 214, that when executed by processor 208, automaticallyidentify a second content item as having a connection to the firstcontent item;

instructions 216, that when executed by processor 208, automaticallygenerate a textual title for the second content item, the textual titlebeing based on the connection between the first content item and thesecond content item; and instructions 218, that when executed byprocessor 208, cause proposing the second content item to a userconsuming content items using the content playing device, whichproposing includes displaying the textual title by the content playingdevice.

In some embodiments, the processor 208 executes the instructions 214,the instructions 216, and the instructions 218 simultaneously with thedisplaying of the first content item caused by execution of theinstructions 212. Stated differently, in some embodiments, the secondcontent item is identified as being connected to the first content item,the title for the second content item is generated, and the secondcontent item is proposed to the user, all done during displaying of thefirst content item.

The second content item determined when instructions 214 are executed byprocessor 208 may be any suitable type of content item, and may includevideo data, an audio clip, textual data, a still picture, and/or agraphic animation.

In some embodiments, storage medium 210 includes additional instructions(not explicitly shown) to be executed by the processor 208, to causedisplaying of the second content item by the content playing device inresponse to the user requesting the second content item, for example byproviding, subsequent to the displaying of the textual title caused byexecuting instructions 218, a suitable command to processor 208 via aremote controller. The processor 208 executes the additionalinstructions to cause displaying of the second content item by thecontent playing device during, or subsequent to, the displaying of thefirst content item and subsequent to execution of instructions 218.Stated differently, the processor causes the content playing device toplay the second content item following receipt of a suitable usercommand, during, or subsequent to, the displaying of the first contentitem and after displaying of the textual title of the second contentitem.

In some such embodiments, the instructions 216 include instructions toautomatically change a default textual title associated with the secondcontent item according to a rule associated with the connection betweenthe first content item and the second content item, thereby to generatethe textual title.

In some embodiment, the content playing device 202 may be a TV system,such that the first content item and/or the second content item aremedia content items.

A method for selecting enrichment data and a title therefor according tothe second embodiment of the teachings herein, using the device of FIG.2A, is now described with respect to FIG. 2B.

As seen, at step 252, processor 208 of device 200 executes instructions212, and causes displaying of a first content item by a content playingdevice 202. In some embodiment, the first content item is a mediacontent item. In some embodiments, the first content item is a non-mediacontent item, for example displayed while the user is browsing theInternet. For example, at step 252, processor 208 may cause Harry'scomputer screen to display highlights from a football game between theteams ‘New England Patriots’ and ‘Minnesota Vikings’.

At step 254, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the content playing device, processor 208 executes instructions214 and automatically identifies a second content item as a content itemhaving a connection to the first content item. The identification of thesecond content item may be carried out using any method known in theart, such as the methods described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,800,951 and inU.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 2013/0198642, 2018/0176660,2012/0183229, 2015/0121432, 2016/0127759, 2016/0191957 and 2016/0119691,all of which are incorporated by reference, for all purposes, as iffully set forth herein.

The second content item identified at step 254 may be any suitablecontent item, and may include video data, an audio clip, textual data, astill picture, and/or a graphic animation.

In some embodiments, in a similar manner to that described hereinabovewith respect to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the first and second content items arevideo content items, and the connection between the first and secondcontent items is selected from the group consisting of:

-   -   A) sharing a common actor or a common actress,    -   B) sharing a common director,    -   C) sharing a common location of filming,    -   D) sharing a common plot location, and    -   E) sharing a common genre.

In some embodiments, in a similar manner to that described hereinabovewith respect to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the first content item is a videocontent item, and the connection between the first and second contentitems is selected from a group consisting of:

-   -   A) a connection between the second content item and the first        video content item as a whole,    -   B) a connection between the second content item and a scene of        the first video content item, and    -   C) a connection between the second content item and a named        entity appearing in the first video content item.

In some embodiments, the first content item and/or the second contentitem may be a non-media content item, for example when the user consumesthe first content item while browsing the Internet.

In the present example, the processor may identify a textual biographyof Tom Brady, the quarterback of the ‘New England Patriots’, entitled‘The Official Life of Tom Brady’ as the second content item. As such, inthe present example, the connection between the first content item andthe second content item is that both content items are related to TomBrady.

At step 256, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the content playing device, processor 208 executes instructions216 and automatically generates a textual title for the second contentitem, which is based on the connection between the first and secondcontent items.

In some embodiments, the automatic generation of the textual title atstep 256 includes automatically, and in real-time—i.e. during displayingof the first content item, generating the textual title based on a ruleassociated with the connection between the first and second contentitems.

In the present example, in which the second content item, a biography ofQB Tom Brady is selected based on Tom Brady's success during the gamebetween the ‘New England Patriots’ and the ‘Minnesota Vikings’ watchedas the first content item, the rule may be “for a named entity<entity_name> described in text <text_name>, generate the title ‘Readabout <entity_name> in <text_name>’, and the resulting title would be“Read about Tom Brady in ‘The Official Life of Tom Brady’”.

At step 258, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the content playing device, processor 208 executes instructions218 and causes the content playing device to display the textual titlefor the second content item, thereby to propose the second content itemto the user.

In the present example, processor 208 would cause Harry's computerscreen to display the generated recommendation “Read about Tom Brady in‘The Official Life of Tom Brady’”.

In some embodiments, at step 260, processor 208 receives a user requestfrom the user for viewing the second content item. In the presentexample, Harry may use his comptuer's mouse to click a hot-linkassociated with the generated recommendation, thereby selecting therecommendation to read “The Official Life of Tom Brady”.

Subsequently, at step 262, processor 208 causes displaying of the secondcontent item by the content playing device. In the present example,Harry's computer screen would proceed to display “The Official Life ofTom Brady”.

Reference is now made to FIG. 3A, which is a schematic block diagram ofan embodiment of a device 300 for selecting enrichment data and a titletherefor according to a third embodiment of the teachings herein.

As seen in FIG. 3A, the device 300 for selecting enrichment data and atitle therefor is functionally associated a content playing device 302.The content playing device 302 may be any suitable content playingdevice, such as a television screen, a computer screen, a projectorprojecting video content onto a wall or a pull-down projector screen,and the like.

In some embodiments, the device 300 may be, or may include, a Set-TopBox. In some embodiments, the device 300 may be, or may include, a smartTV, in which case the content playing device may be the screen of thesmart TV. In some embodiments, the content playing device 302 may be, ormay include, a Set-Top Box. In some embodiments, the content playingdevice 302 may be, or may include, a smart TV.

In some embodiments, device 300 may be functionally associated with oneor more databases 304 including content suitable for providing asenrichment data, such as a database of sports statistics suitable forproviding as enrichment content, a database including biographicalinformation and images of actors and actresses, a video clip database,and the like. In some embodiments, device 300 may be connected to, orform part of, a network which can be searched for enrichment data, suchas the Internet, as indicated by arrow 306.

Device 300 includes a processor 308 and a storage medium 310, which istypically a non-transitory computer readable storage medium.

Processor 308 is in communication with the content playing device 302.

In some embodiments, the processor may be in direct communication withthe content playing device 302. For example, when device 300 is a smartTV and the content playing device 302 is a screen of the smart TV, theprocessor 308 is in direct communication with the content playingdevice. As another example, the device 300 may be a Set-Top Box, whichis in direct communication with a content playing device 302 to which itprovides content.

In some embodiments, the processor may be in indirect communication withthe content playing device 302, or may communicate with the contentplaying device via one or more intermediate devices. For example, whendevice 300 is a server, the processor may communicate with contentplaying device 302 via a Set-Top Box corresponding to the contentplaying device 302, which Set-Top Box functions as an intermediatedevice.

The storage medium 310 includes instructions to be executed by theprocessor 308, in order to carry out various steps of the methoddescribed herein below with respect to FIG. 3B. Specifically, thestorage medium includes the following instructions:

instructions 312, that when executed by processor 308, cause displayingof a first content item by the content playing device 302;

instructions 314, that when executed by processor 308, automaticallyidentify a second content item as having a connection to the firstcontent item;

instructions 316, that when executed by processor 308, automaticallyselect a textual title for the second content item from a group ofmultiple textual titles associated with the second content item, wherethe selection is based on the connection between the first content itemand the second content item; and instructions 318, that when executed byprocessor 308, cause proposing the second content item to a userconsuming content items using the content playing device, whichproposing includes displaying the textual title by the content playingdevice.

In some embodiments, the processor 308 executes the instructions 314,the instructions 316, and the instructions 318 simultaneously with thedisplaying of the first content item caused by execution of theinstructions 312. Stated differently, in some embodiments, the secondcontent item is identified as being connected to the first content item,the title for the second content item is selected, and the secondcontent item is proposed to the user, all done during displaying of thefirst content item.

The second content item determined when instructions 314 are executed byprocessor 308 may be any suitable type of content item, and may includevideo data, an audio clip, textual data, a still picture, and/or agraphic animation.

In some embodiments, storage medium 310 includes additional instructions(not explicitly shown) to be executed by the processor 308, to causedisplaying of the second content item by the content playing device inresponse to the user requesting the second content item, for example byproviding, subsequent to the displaying of the textual title caused byexecuting instructions 318, a suitable command to processor 308 via aremote controller. The processor 308 executes the additionalinstructions to cause displaying of the second content item by thecontent playing device during, or subsequent to, the displaying of thefirst content item and subsequent to execution of instructions 318.Stated differently, the processor causes the content playing device toplay the second content item following receipt of a suitable usercommand, during, or subsequent to, displaying of the first content itemand after displaying of the textual title of the second content item.

In some embodiment, the content playing device 302 may be a TV system,such that the first content item and/or the second content item aremedia content items.

A method for selecting enrichment data and a title therefor according tothe third embodiment of the teachings herein, using the device of FIG.3A, is now described with respect to FIG. 3B.

As seen, at step 352, processor 308 of device 300 executes instructions312, and causes displaying of a first content item by a content playingdevice 302. In some embodiment, the first content item is a mediacontent item. In some embodiments, the first content item is a non-mediacontent item, for example displayed while the user is browsing theInternet.

For example, at step 352, processor 308 may cause John's tablet screento display the movie “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial”.

At step 354, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the content playing device, processor 308 executes instructions314 and automatically identifies a second content item as a content itemhaving a connection to the first content item. The identification of thesecond content item may be carried out using any method known in theart, such as the methods described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,800,951 and inU.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 2013/0198642, 2018/0176660,2012/0183229, 2015/0121432, 2016/0127759, 2016/0191957 and 2016/0119691,all of which are incorporated by reference, for all purposes, as iffully set forth herein.

The second content item identified at step 354 may be any suitablecontent item, and may include video data, an audio clip, textual data, astill picture, and/or a graphic animation.

In some embodiments, in a similar manner to that described hereinabovewith respect to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the first and second content items arevideo content items, and the first connection between the first andsecond content items is selected from the group consisting of:

-   -   A) sharing a common actor or a common actress,    -   B) sharing a common director,    -   C) sharing a common location of filming,    -   D) sharing a common plot location, and    -   E) sharing a common genre.

In some embodiments, in a similar manner to that described hereinabovewith respect to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the first content item is a videocontent item, and the connection between the first and second contentitems is selected from a group consisting of:

-   -   A) a connection between the second content item and the first        video content item as a whole,    -   B) a connection between the second content item and a scene of        the first video content item, and    -   C) a connection between the second content item and a named        entity appearing in the first video content item.

In some embodiments, the first content item and/or the second contentitem may be a non-media content item, for example when the user consumesthe first content item while browsing the Internet.

In the present example, the processor may identify the movie“Schindler's List” as the second content item. As such, in the presentexample, the connection between the first content item and the secondcontent item is that both content items share a common director, StevenSpielberg.

At step 356, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the content playing device, processor 308 executes instructions316 and automatically selects a textual title for the second contentitem from a group of pre-defined textual titles for the second contentitem. The selected textual title is based on the connection between thefirst and second content items.

In some embodiments, each textual title in the group relates to anaspect of the second content item which may form a connection with othercontent items. In the present example, the group may include the textualtitles:

“Learn about the Holocaust in ‘Schindler's List’” (“Schindler's List” isset during the Holocaust);

“Learn History from ‘Schindler's List’” (“Schindler's List” is ahistorical drama);

“Steven Spielberg's creativity in ‘Schindler's List’” (Steven Spielbergdirected “Schindler's List”); and

“Human Kindness with ‘Liam Neeson’” (Liam Neeson stars in “Schindler'sList” as the Jew-saving Oskar Schindler).

The title that would be selected in the present example is the titlethat emphasizes the connection to Steven Spielberg, namely “StevenSpielberg's creativity in ‘Schindler's List’”.

At step 358, which takes place during displaying of the first contentitem by the content playing device, processor 308 executes instructions318 and causes the content playing device to display the textual titlefor the second content item, thereby to propose the second content itemto the user.

In the present example, processor 308 would cause John's tablet screento display the generated recommendation “Steven Spielberg's creativityin ‘Schindler's List’”.

In some embodiments, at step 360, processor 308 receives a user requestfrom the user for viewing the second content item. In the presentexample, John may touch the screen of his tablet to select a hot-linkassociated with the generated recommendation, thereby selecting therecommendation to watch “Schindler's List”.

Subsequently, at step 362, processor 308 causes displaying of the secondcontent item by the content playing device. In the present example,John's table screen would proceed to display “Schindler's list”.

Definitions

This disclosure, including the description of the invention and theclaims, should be interpreted according to the definitions below.

In case of a contradiction between the definitions provided herein andother sections of this disclosure, these definitions should prevail.

In case of a contradiction between the definitions provided herein and adefinition or a description in any other document, including in anotherdocument included in this disclosure by reference, these definitionsshould prevail, even if the definition or the description in the otherdocument is commonly accepted by a person of ordinary skill in the art.

-   -   1. “content”—information and experiences that are directed        towards an end-user or audience.    -   2. “content item”—a stand-alone unit of content that can be        referred to and uniquely identified by a single reference and        can be retrieved and displayed independently of other content.        For example, a movie, a TV series, a still image, or a paragraph        of text.    -   3. “media content item”—a content item that contains media        content. For example, a movie, a TV program, an episode of a TV        series, a video clip, an animation, an audio clip, or a still        image.    -   4. “non-media content item”—a content item that is not a media        content item. For example, a paragraph of text.    -   5. “audio content item”—a media content item that contains only        an audio track hearable using a speaker or a microphone.    -   6. “video content item”—a media content item that contains a        visual track viewable on a screen. A video content item may or        may not additionally contain an audio track.    -   7. “audio” and “aural” are used as synonyms herein.    -   8. “video” and “visual” are used as synonyms herein.    -   9. “audio channel” and “audio track” are used as synonyms        herein. Both refer to an audio component of a media content        item.    -   10. “video channel” and “video track” are used as synonyms        herein. Both refer to a video component of a media content item.        A still image is a special case of video track.    -   11. “content playing device”—a device that is capable of playing        or displaying at least some content items. For example, a        graphic engine that is capable of displaying paragraphs of text,        a combined video/audio player that is capable of playing in        parallel both the video channel and the audio channel of at        least some media content items.    -   12. “media playing device”—a device that is capable of playing        or displaying at least some media content items. For example, an        audio-only player that is capable of playing at least some audio        content items, a video-only player that is capable of playing        the video track of at least some video content items, a combined        video/audio player that is capable of playing in parallel both        the video channel and the audio channel of at least some media        content items.    -   13. “playing a media content item”—outputting at least one of a        video channel and an audio channel of the media content item to        a visual output device (for example a TV screen) or an audio        output device (for example a speaker or headphones). If the        media content item is a still image, then playing it means        outputting the still image to a visual output device. If the        media content item is a video content item that has both a video        channel and an audio channel, then playing it means outputting        both the video channel and the audio channel to a visual output        device and an audio output device, respectively. Pausing a video        content item in the middle of playing is considered playing it.        Also, showing the last frame of a video content item after it        was played to its end is considered playing the video content        item.    -   14. “displaying a media content item”—outputting a video channel        of the media content item to a visual output device (for example        a TV screen). If the media content item is a still image, then        displaying it means outputting the still image to a visual        output device. Pausing a video content item in the middle of        playing it is considered displaying it. Also, showing the last        frame of a video content item after it was played to its end is        considered displaying the video content item.    -   15. “displaying a non-media content item”—outputting a visual        image of the non-media content item to a visual output device        (for example outputting a visual image of a paragraph of text to        a computer screen).    -   16. “entity”—something that exists as itself, as a subject or as        an object, actually or potentially, concretely or abstractly,        physically or not. It need not be of material existence. In        particular, abstractions and legal fictions are regarded as        entities. There is also no presumption that an entity is        animate, or present. Specifically, an entity may be a person        entity, a location entity, an organization entity, a media        content item entity, a topic entity or a group entity. Note that        the term “entity” does not refer to the text referencing the        subject or the object, but to the identity of the subject or the        object.    -   17. “person entity”—a real person entity, a character entity or        a role entity.    -   18. “real person entity”—a person that currently lives or that        had lived in the past, identified by a name (e.g. John Kennedy)        or a nickname (e.g. Fat Joe).    -   19. “character entity”—a fictional person that is not alive        today and was not alive in the past, identified by a name or a        nickname. For example, “Superman”, “Howard Roark”, etc.    -   20. “role entity”—a person uniquely identified by a title or by        a characteristic. For example “the 23^(rd) president of the        United States”, “the oldest person alive today”, “the tallest        person that ever lived”, “the discoverer of the penicillin”,        etc.    -   21. “location entity”—an explicit location entity or an implicit        location entity.    -   22. “explicit location entity”—a location identified by a name        (e.g. “Jerusalem”, “Manhattan 6^(th) Avenue”, “Golani Junction”,        “the Dead Sea”) or by a geographic locator (e.g. “ten kilometers        north of Golani Junction”, “100 degrees East, 50 degrees        North”).    -   23. “implicit location entity”—a location identified by a title        or a by a characteristic (e.g. “the tallest mountain peak in        Italy”, “the largest lake in the world”).    -   24. “organization entity”—an organization identified by a name        (e.g. “the United Nations”, “Microsoft”) or a nickname (e.g.        “the Mossad”).    -   25. “media content item entity”—A media content item identified        by a name (e.g. “Gone with the Wind” is a media content item        entity that is a movie, and “Love Me Do” is a media content item        entity that is a song).    -   26. “topic entity”—a potential subject of a conversation or a        discussion. For example, the probability that Hillary Clinton        will win the presidential election, the current relations        between Russia and the US, the future of agriculture in OECD        countries.    -   27. “group entity”—a group of entities of any type. The        different member entities of a group may be of different types.    -   28. “nickname of an entity”—any name by which an entity is known        which is not its official name, including a pen name, a stage        name and a name used by the public or by a group of people to        refer to it or to address it.    -   29. “named entity”—An entity that is identified by a name or a        nickname and not by other types of description. For example,        “Jerusalem” is a named entity, but “the tallest building in        Jerusalem” is not a named entity (even though it is a perfectly        valid entity, that is uniquely identified).    -   30. “NER” or “Named Entity Recognition”—The task of recognizing        the occurrence of a reference to a named entity within a text,        without necessarily identifying the identity of the specific        named entity referred to by the reference.    -   31. “NED” or “Named Entity Disambiguation”—The task of        determining the identity of a specific named entity referred to        by a reference to a named entity occurring in a text, when the        reference can match the identities of multiple candidate named        entities. The disambiguation results in assigning one of the        identities of the multiple candidate named entities to the        reference occurring in the text. Note that the task of Named        Entity Disambiguation also includes the initial step of        determining that an occurrence of a reference to a named entity        is ambiguous and requires disambiguation. However, the task of        Named Entity Disambiguation does not include the determining of        the identity of a specific named entity when the occurrence of        the reference to the named entity in the text can only match the        identity of a single named entity, as there is no need for        disambiguation in such case.    -   32. “subtitles”—Text derived from either a transcript or a        screenplay of a dialog or commentary in movies, television        programs and the like, displayable on the screen while the movie        or program is being played. Subtitles can either be a        translation of text spoken in the movie or program into a        different language, or a rendering of text in the same language        spoken in the movie or program. Subtitles may include added        information to help viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing to        follow the dialog or commentary, or to help people who cannot        understand the spoken dialogue or commentary, or who have accent        recognition problems. The subtitles can either be pre-rendered        with the video or separately provided as either graphics or text        to be rendered and overlaid by a rendering device.    -   33. “OCR” or “Optical Character Recognition”—The mechanical or        electronic conversion of images of typed, handwritten or printed        text into machine-encoded text, whether from a scanned document,        a photo of a document, a scene-photo (for example the text on        signs and billboards in a landscape photo) or from subtitles        text superimposed on an image (for example from a television        broadcast).    -   34. “speech-to-text conversion”—A process by which spoken        language is recognized and translated into machine-encoded text        by computers. It is also known as “automatic speech recognition”        (ASR), “computer speech recognition”, or just “speech to text”        (STT).    -   35. “video shot” (also referred to herein as “shot”)—A        continuous sequence of frames within a video content item that        were continuously recorded by the same camera. A video shot is a        physical entity that does not deal with the semantic meaning of        its content.    -   36. “video scene” (also referred to herein as “scene”)—A        collection of one or more semantically-related and temporally        adjacent video shots depicting and conveying a high-level        concept or story. In other words, a video scene is a semantic        entity that is a continuous portion of a video content item and        has an independent identity of its own. For example, one news        item of a news program or a car chase scene of an action movie.        Typically there are multiple video scenes within a video content        item, but a video scene may also be the only one within its        video content item, as may be the case for a short music video        clip.    -   37. “video segment” (also referred to herein as “segment”)—A        continuous portion of a video content item that is strictly        smaller than the enclosing video content item. A video segment        may coincide with a video shot or with a video scene, but does        not have to. That is—a video segment may be a single shot,        multiple shots, a portion of a shot, multiple shots plus a        portion of a shot, a single scene, multiple scenes, a portion of        a scene, or multiple scenes plus a portion of a scene. It should        be emphasized that a video segment extracted from its enclosing        video content item and put back into a library or collection of        video content items as a stand-alone video item, is no longer        considered to be a video segment and becomes a video content        item of its own. This is so even if the enclosing video content        item from which the segment was extracted is available in the        same library or collection. That is, a car chasing scene        extracted from a movie and posted as a short video in YouTube is        no longer a video segment for the purpose of the present        solution.    -   38. “content component” or “content unit”—A content item or a        video segment.    -   39. “title of a content item”—Text associated with the content        item that provides some information related to the content item.        The title of a content item may be displayed when recommending        the content item to a user. The text of a title of a content        item, or a portion of it, may serve as a hot link for accessing        the content item by selecting it (e.g. by clicking it using a        mouse or by touching it in a touch screen).    -   40. “strictly larger”—Larger and not equal to.    -   41. “or”—A logical operator combining two Boolean input        conditions into a Boolean compound condition, such that the        compound condition is satisfied if and only if at least one of        the two input conditions is satisfied. In other words, if        condition C=condition A or condition B, then condition C is not        satisfied when both condition A and condition B are not        satisfied, but is satisfied in each of the following cases: (i)        condition A is satisfied and condition B is not satisfied, (ii)        condition A is not satisfied and condition B is satisfied,        and (iii) both condition A and condition B are satisfied.    -   42. “one of A and B”—If A and B are specific items, then “one of        A and B” is equivalent to “only A or only B, but not both”. For        example, “one of John and Mary” is equivalent to “only John or        only Mary, but not both John and Mary”. If A and B are        categories, then “one of A and B” is equivalent to “only one of        A or only one of B, but not both one of A and one of B”. For        example, “one of a dog and a cat” is equivalent to “only one dog        or only one cat, but not both one dog and one cat”.        -   Similarly, if A and B are specific items, then “at least one            of A and B” is equivalent to “only A or only B, or both A            and B”. For example, “at least one of John and Mary” is            equivalent to “only John or only Mary, or both John and            Mary”. If A and B are categories, then “at least one of A            and B” is equivalent to “only at least one of A or only at            least one of B, or both at least one of A and at least one            of B”. For example, “at least one of a dog and a cat” is            equivalent to “only at least one dog or only at least one            cat, or both at least one dog and at least one cat”.        -   Note that in “one of dogs and cats”, “dogs” and “cats” are            not categories but specific groups (i.e. specific items).            Therefore, “one of dogs and cats” is equivalent to “only            dogs or only cats, but not both dogs and cats”. Similarly,            “at least one of dogs and cats” is equivalent to “only dogs            or only cats, or both dogs and cats”.        -   If A, B and C are specific items, then “one of A, B and C”            is equivalent to “only A or only B or only C, but not a            combination of two or three members of the group consisting            of: A, B and C”, and “at least one of A, B and C” is            equivalent to “only A or only B or only C, or any            combination of two or three members of the group consisting            of: A, B and C”.        -   If A, B and C are categories, then “one of A, B and C” is            equivalent to “only one of A or only one of B or only one of            C, but not a combination of two or three members of the            group consisting of: one of A, one of B and one of C”, and            “at least one of A, B and C” is equivalent to “only at least            one of A or only at least one of B or only at least one of            C, or any combination of two or three members of the group            consisting of: one of A, one of B and one of C”.        -   If the list following the “one of” or the “at least one of”            contains more than three members, then the previous            definitions are again applicable, with the appropriate            modifications that extrapolate the above logic.        -   Note that “one or more of” is equivalent to “at least one            of”, and the two terms are used synonymously.

It will be appreciated that certain features of the invention, whichare, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, mayalso be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely,various features of the invention, which are, for brevity, described inthe context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately orin any suitable sub-combination.

Although the invention has been described in conjunction with specificembodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modificationsand variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art.Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives,modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scopeof the appended claims. All publications, patents and patentapplications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated intheir entirety by reference into the specification, to the same extentas if each individual publication, patent or patent application wasspecifically and individually indicated to be incorporated herein byreference. In addition, citation or identification of any reference inthis application shall not be construed as an admission that suchreference is available as prior art to the present invention.

1) A method for enhancing user experience of users consuming contentitems using content playing devices, comprising: a) causing displaying afirst content item by a first content playing device; b) during saiddisplaying of said first content item by said first content playingdevice: i) automatically identifying a second content item as a contentitem having a first connection to said first content item, ii)automatically determining a first textual title for said second contentitem, and iii) causing proposing said second content item to a first ofsaid users, said proposing including displaying said first textual titleby said first content playing device; c) causing displaying a thirdcontent item by a second content playing device; and d) during saiddisplaying of said third content item by said second content playingdevice: i) automatically identifying said second content item as acontent item having a second connection to said third content item, ii)automatically determining a second textual title for said second contentitem, said second textual title being different from said first textualtitle, and iii) causing proposing said second content item to a secondof said users, said proposing including displaying said second textualtitle by said second content playing device. 2) The method of claim 1,wherein said first content playing device and said second contentplaying device are the same content playing device. 3) The method ofclaim 1, wherein said second content playing device is different fromsaid first content playing device. 4) The method of claim 1, whereinsaid first of said users and said second of said users are the sameuser. 5) The method of claim 1, wherein said first of said users andsaid second of said users are different users. 6) The method of claim 1,further comprising at least one step selected from a group consistingof: i) during said displaying of said first content item by said firstcontent playing device and subsequent to said displaying of said firsttextual title by said first content playing device, in response to saidfirst of said users requesting said second content item, causingdisplaying said second content item by said first content playingdevice, and ii) during said displaying of said third content item bysaid second content playing device and subsequent to said displaying ofsaid second textual title by said second content playing device, inresponse to said second of said users requesting said second contentitem, causing displaying said second content item by said second contentplaying device. 7) The method of claim 1, wherein at least one statementselected from a group consisting of the following statements is true: i)said automatically determining of said first textual title for saidsecond content item is based on said first connection, and ii) saidautomatically determining of said second textual title for said secondcontent item is based on said second connection. 8) The method of claim1, wherein at least one statement selected from a group consisting ofthe following statements is true: i) said automatically determining ofsaid first textual title includes automatically selecting said firsttextual title from a group of multiple textual titles for said secondcontent item, and ii) said automatically determining of said secondtextual title includes automatically selecting said second textual titlefrom said group of multiple textual titles for said second content item.9) The method of claim 1, wherein at least one statement selected from agroup consisting of the following statements is true: i) saidautomatically determining of said first textual title includesautomatically generating said first textual title during said displayingof said first content item by said first content playing device, and ii)said automatically determining of said second textual title includesautomatically generating said second textual title during saiddisplaying of said third content item by said second content playingdevice. 10) The method of claim 9, wherein at least one statementselected from a group consisting of the following statements is true: i)said automatically generating of said first textual title includesautomatically changing a default textual title according to a ruleassociated with said first connection, and ii) said automaticallygenerating of said second textual title includes automatically changingsaid default textual title according to a rule associated with saidsecond connection. 11) The method of claim 1, wherein said first, secondand third content items are video content items, and wherein at leastone connection selected from a group consisting of said first connectionand said second connection is selected from a group consisting of: A)sharing a common actor or a common actress, B) sharing a commondirector, C) sharing a common location of filming, D) sharing a commonplot location, and E) sharing a common genre. 12) The method of claim 1,wherein said first and said third content items are first and thirdvideo content items, and wherein at least one connection selected from agroup consisting of said first connection and said second connection isselected from a group consisting of: A) a connection between said secondcontent item and said first or said third video content item as a whole,B) a connection between said second content item and a scene of saidfirst or said third video content item, and C) a connection between saidsecond content item and a named entity appearing in said first or saidthird video content item. 13) A method for enhancing user experiencewhile a user is consuming content items using a content playing device,the method comprising: a) causing displaying a first content item by thecontent playing device; b) during said displaying of said first contentitem by the content playing device: i) automatically identifying asecond content item as a content item having a connection to said firstcontent item, ii) subsequent to said automatically identifying saidsecond content item, automatically generating a textual title for saidsecond content item, said textual title being based on said connectionbetween said second content item and said first content item, and iii)causing proposing said second content item to the user, said proposingincluding displaying said textual title by the content playing device.14) The method of claim 13, further comprising: during said displayingof said first content item by the content playing device and subsequentto said displaying of said textual title by the content playing device,in response to the user requesting said second content item, causingdisplaying said second content item by the content playing device. 15)The method of claim 13, wherein said automatically generating of saidtextual title includes automatically changing a default textual titleaccording to a rule associated with said connection between said secondcontent item and said first content item. 16) The method of claim 13,wherein said first and second content items are video content items, andwherein said connection between said second content item and said firstcontent item is selected from a group consisting of: A) sharing a commonactor or a common actress, B) sharing a common director, C) sharing acommon location of filming, D) sharing a common plot location, and E)sharing a common genre. 17) A method for enhancing user experience whilea user is consuming content items using a content displaying device, themethod comprising: a) causing displaying a first content item by thecontent playing device; b) during said displaying of said first contentitem by the content playing device: i) automatically identifying asecond content item as a content item having a connection to said firstcontent item, ii) subsequent to said automatically identifying saidsecond content item, automatically selecting a textual title for saidsecond content item from a group of multiple textual titles associatedwith said second content item, wherein the automatically selecting isbased on the connection between said second content item and said firstcontent item, and iii) causing proposing said second content item to theuser, said proposing including displaying said textual title by thecontent playing device. 18) The method of claim 17, wherein each of saidtextual titles in said group of multiple textual titles is defined priorto said displaying of said first content item. 19) The method of claim17, further comprising: during said displaying of said first contentitem by the content playing device and subsequent to said displaying ofsaid textual title by the content playing device, in response to theuser requesting said second content item, causing displaying said secondcontent item by the content playing device. 20) The method of claim 17,wherein said first and second content items are video content items, andwherein said connection between said second content item and said firstcontent item is selected from a group consisting of: A) sharing a commonactor or a common actress, B) sharing a common director, C) sharing acommon location of filming, D) sharing a common plot location, and E)sharing a common genre.